Using Bio-Feedback To Defeat Stress

The treatment of stress is a multi-billion dollar industry in the US Millions of people, all over the country, go to therapists, take medications, and try all sorts of methods to attempt to get rid of the stresses building up inside them.

Many times, however, it is far easier to avoid stress than to get rid of it once it manifests. But to do this, you need to be able to recognize the onset symptoms of stress. One way of doing this is through bio-feedback.

Biofeedback is a methodology that focuses on making you aware of the various physical and psychological changes taking place in your body, at the time they are occurring. Therefore, the first goal of biofeedback is immediate recognition of these physiological changes (ie stress reactions). The secondary goal is to then learn to manipulate the reactions of your body to prevent these changes from morphing into stress. The best way to train your body is to have the entire training process overseen by a therapist who specializes in biofeedback techniques.

At any given time, most people are unaware of the changes taking place in their bodies. In order to help them gain sensitivity to these changes, the person will typically be hooked up to machines that measure certain changes happening throughout the body. For example, blood pressure monitors will monitor his blood pressure, brain imaging sensors can give feedback on his brain activity, other monitors keep track of his heart rate, and so on. Once, after continuously receiving feedback from these machines, and the therapist, the person will slowly learn to recognize the signs that precede stress. This recognition process can take days, weeks, or months depending on the person.

Once the person is able to accurately predict the changes occurring in his body, he can then start to learn to control his body's reactions and thus his stress response. At this point, the therapist will begin to teach the person relaxation techniques.

And the biofeedback machines are just as important in this stage as well. As the person applies the particular relaxation technique, the machines let both the patient and the therapist know how successful they have been. With continued practice, the person can ever learn to recognize the stress signs as they are developing, and successfully use one or more of the relaxation techniques to stop it in its tracks.

As biofeedback has become more popular, certain experts have created home biofeedback systems and kits that can help you to learn to control your stress impulses without the aid of a therapist. While not as good as having a flesh and blood therapist guide you, some are still good enough to provide you with a good amount of stress relief.